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Where the BP oil spill money is going

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Most of its 40,000-plus pounds was sand and water, a Coast Guard official says

Louisiana is the last state where Deepwater Horizon cleanup continues

Three years after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, workers have dug up a massive chunk of weathered crude from the shallows off a Louisiana beach.

The tar mat, a slab of oil residue mixed with wet sand, was about 165 feet long by 65 feet wide, said Lt. Cmdr. Natalie Murphy, a Coast Guard spokeswoman. It weighed more than 40,000 pounds, but more than 85% of that weight was sand, shells and water, she said.

The mat was found under the surf off Isle Grand Terre, Louisiana, about 90 miles south of New Orleans. Crews using an excavator dug the largely submerged tar mat out of the beach in chunks over the last few weeks, Murphy said.

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How much should BP owe for oil spill?

Isaac's trail of destruction – Melanie and Philip Martinez Sr. have dinner in daughter Kala's one-bedroom apartment on Saturday, September 8, in Chalmette, Louisiana. Melanie, along with her husband and mother, are staying in Kala's apartment after their home in Braithwaite flooded during Hurricane Isaac. It was the fifth home Martinez has lost to hurricanes in Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Melanie Martinez, center, waits in line to apply for disaster food assistance in Mereaux, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – On Friday, September 7, Gina Hunter walks past the front porch of her home, which washed onto a levee in Plaquemines Parish in Braithwaite, Louisiana. "I never expected to have the levee as my backyard," Hunter says. Louisiana officials estimate at least 13,000 homes were damaged by Hurricane Isaac.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Mud coats the kitchen of the flooded Mary Plantation House, the oldest structure in Louisiana's Plaquemines Parish, on Thursday, September 6. At least 13,000 homes were damaged throughout Louisiana after Hurricane Isaac came ashore last week, a state official estimates.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Marie Hauser picks up her mail outside her flooded house Thursday in LaPlace, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Blake Miller, right, and Mike Atkins check out the grounds of the Mary Plantation House on Thursday.

Isaac's trail of destruction – Worker Holly Rochelle sorts a resident's laundry, washed for free at the Tide Loads of Hope mobile laundromat set up for those affected by Isaac, on Thursday in LaPlace.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A paper hand fan sits caked in mud from flooding at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Plaquemines Parish on Wednesday, September 5.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – An insurance inspector tours the damaged Bethlehem Baptist Church on Tuesday.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Richard Williams of the Braithwaite neighborhood in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, trudges through a debris field pulling a boat filled with things from his flooded home on Wednesday. Hurricane Isaac inundated his two-story home.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Fred Leslie is helped into a boat by Jesse Shaffer after he and his half-brother made their way to the house to retrieve items on Wednesday. The Braithwaite neighborhood is still under four feet of water eight days after Hurricane Isaac hit.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Ruth Bernard feeds ice to Micah Faciane to stay cool as they wait in line to apply for disaster food assistance on Wednesday in Westwego, Louisiana. Hundreds affected by Hurricane Isaac waited hours in the heat to apply for the Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Residents wait in line to apply for disaster food assistance on Wednesday in Westwego, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Louis Lipps tries to salvage belongings near his house on Lake Pontchartrain in LaPlace, Louisiana, on Tuesday, September 4. Many residents returning to their homes in southern Louisiana after Hurricane Isaac will find little comfort. Authorities have blamed eight U.S. deaths on Isaac, six of them in Louisiana, after it made landfall last week as a Category 1 hurricane.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Royal Ann Moll stands in the doorway of her home in Jean Lafitte, Louisiana, as friend Tilden Perez Jr. tries to spray away mud from the front yard Tuesday. Perez and his wife rode out the storm in Moll's house, which took on about 11 inches of water.

Isaac's trail of destruction – Returning residents wait in line Tuesday for a ferry in Plaquemines Parish.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A wounded horse recovers Tuesday in Poydras, Louisiana, after being rescued when it got stuck in mud from storm flooding.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A home washed away from its foundation sits on a roadside Tuesday in Braithwaite in Plaquemines Parish.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Melanie Martinez holds the family cat, now renamed Isaac, after salvaging items from her family's flooded home in Braithwaite on Monday, September 3. Martinez, along with her husband and her mother, was forced to ride out the storm in their Plaquemines Parish home when their car broke down.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Melanie Martinez walks through the front yard Monday as family members salvage items from their flooded home in Braithwaite, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Melanie Martinez, left, and family members salvage items from their flooded home Monday.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A coffin lies on the side of a levee Monday in Braithwaite, Louisiana, washed up by floodwaters from Hurricane Isaac.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Eric DeSalvo salvages a gun Monday from the flooded Martinez home in Braithwaite, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Melanie Martinez, center, and Kala Martinez salvage items from their flooded home on Monday.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Workers repair the roof of a home as downed power lines caused by Hurricane Isaac lean onto a tree in lower Plaquemines Parish on Sunday, September 2.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A Paradise Lane street sign is partially submerged in Isaac's floodwaters in Braithwaite, Louisiana, on Saturday, September 1.

Isaac's trail of destruction – Russell Wilson, center, helps to move a water-damaged Drew Brees jersey from his daughter's home in Braithwaite.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Plaquemines Parish resident Angela Serpas reacts after seeing her flooded home for the first time following Hurricane Isaac, as her daughter Lainy takes pictures, in Braithwaite, Louisiana, on Saturday, September 1.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – The Walker family leaves their home after an abandoned house next door collapsed onto theirs during Tropical Storm Isaac on Friday, August 31. The Red Cross was assisting the family in finding a place to stay.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Cattle are stuck in a mixture of mud and debris washed in by Isaac's storm surge. Officials are attempting to conduct a roundup in Plaquemines to save about 200 cattle stranded by the storm.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Local residents serve up chicken etouffee and rice delivered by the Louisiana National Guard at JJ's Bar in the Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans. The military gave out the food to residents of the area, which was still without electricity three days after Hurricane Isaac knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Local residents drink by candlelight at JJ's bar during the continued blackout.

Isaac's trail of destruction – Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney talks with a man on the side of the road while on an unscheduled tour of a neighorhood damaged by Isaac on Friday, August 31, in Lafitte, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A family carries bags of ice and boxes of food from an aid distribution center for victims of Isaac in New Orleans. The center was one of three in the city operated by the military, offering handouts to residents, many of whom still have no electricity due to the storm.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Residents look out from their residence surrounded by water as the motorcade of Romney passes during a tour of damage from Isaac in Lafitte.

Isaac's trail of destruction – A heavy band of storms hovers ominously over New Orleans in the aftermath of Isaac on Thursday.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Two men paddle a boat with street signs in flood waters from Hurricane Isaac in Reserve, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Subdivisions in LaPlace, west of U.S. 51 and south of Interstate-10 are covered in floodwaters in the aftermath of Isaac.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – The Lake Borgne Basin Levee District and other government agencies intentionally breached the Caernarvon Diversion to help drain flood waters in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A woman is stranded with her truck in floodwaters from Isaac on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain on Thursday in Slidell, Louisiana.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Brittany Trumbaturi, right, prepares to leave her flooded home with family member Joshua Barbot, center, who came to rescue family members in a boat. Officials warned of continued threats from storm surges and flooding as Isaac moved inland.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Jamaal Nelson carries his son, Jon-Wesley, 6, on his back and his 4-month-old baby daughter, Jalashia, while being evacuated from their flooded neighborhood in Slidell.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Residents stand in front of their home as flooded streets engulf their neighborhood in Slidell.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Elderly residents evacuate to a shelter in Slidell

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A resident evacuates an area flooded by Hurricane Isaac's storm surge on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain.

Isaac's trail of destruction – Errol Ragas walks past a cemetery to recover dry blankets from his home as rising waters flood in Oakville, Louisiana. Plaquemines Parish, south of New Orleans, was the area most heavily damaged by the hurricane.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Storm-weary residents take refuge at a high school gymnasium in Belle Chasse, a low-lying area outside of New Orleans.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – St. John Parish Sherriff officials rescue local residents from the flood waters in Laplace.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – Lisa, Christopher and Leroy Smith sit in a boat after being pulled from the flood waters.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A stop sign stands askew in New Orleans after being blown by Isaac.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – People gather at a bar in the French Quarter during ongoing rain from Isaac. The area appeared largely unscathed by the storm.

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Isaac's trail of destruction – A house in New Orleans collapsed during the height of Hurricane Isaac, destroying three vehicles parked alongside it Wednesday.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A child and an adult share a folding bed as storm-weary residents take refuge at a high school gymnasium in Belle Chasse, in low-lying Plaquemines Parish, outside of New Orleans.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A tree toppled by Isaac stretches across the roof of a food stand in Arabi, Louisiana.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A street sign lies near floodwaters fromIsaac on Wednesday, in Braithwaite, Louisiana. Dozens were reportedly rescued in the area after levees were overtopped by floodwaters from Hurricane Isaac.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A car drives down Canal Street on Wednesday. The storm is slowly moving across southeast Louisiana, dumping large amounts of rain and knocking out power in scattered parts of the state.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Emily Schneider leans against a pole to support herself against strong winds while visiting the banks of Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans, where Hurricane Isaac has made landfall.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Water rises from a bayou, flooding properties ahead of the arrival of Hurricane Isaac in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Bridgette Mooney, her husband Kevin, and their 15-month-old daughter Skyler watch from their home as Hurricane Isaac lashes their property with rain in Kiln, Mississippi.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Employees of the Orleans Levee District remove signs from Lake Shore Drive near the shore of Lake Pontchartrain.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A group of men sit on a bench at the edge of Lake Pontchartrain as Hurricane Isaac approaches.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Matthew Pettus holds a sheet open in the wind on the levee near Lake Pontchartrain.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – People make their way across Canal Street in New Orleans.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Joshua Keegan and his dog Scout swim in the rising water of Lake Pontchartrain.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A Mississippi Department of Transportation sign in Hattiesburg warns southbound motorists on U.S. 49 of rough weather conditions on Tuesday, August 28. Hurricane Isaac is expected to drop heavy rain on the Mississippi Coast over the next couple of days.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A woman and her dog watch the waves produced by Hurricane Isaac on the shore of Lake Pontchatrain in New Orleans on Tuesday. Hurricane Isaac is expected to make landfall later tonight along the Louisiana coast.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu receive an update on the status of the pumping station at the 17th Street Canal in Metairie, Louisiana.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A couple takes photos in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. Many residents of the area decided to stay in their homes instead of evacuating.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A man skateboards past a bar with boarded windows in the French Quarter in New Orleans.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A woman enjoys the a heavy rain in the Tampa, Florida, area, on Monday. Hurricane Isaac is expected to make landfall near New Orleans.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Mounted law enforcement officials wait out a brief rainstorm during the National Republican Convention. Commercial bus cancellations caused by Isaac prevented many of the expected demonstrators from being present.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A sign in the French Quarter makes fun of Hurricane Isaac.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Workers place plywood on the windows of the Royal Sonesta Hotel on Bourbon Street.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Aimo Ny rests on her cot in the hurricane shelter at the Belle Chasse Auditorium on Monday in Belle Chasse, Louisiana.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – iReporter Liz Yavinsky snapped this picture of a boy floating down a flooded street in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – The manager of a shoe store in Harvey, Louisiana, places plywood over the windows in preparation of Hurricane Isaac.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A crew from Jefferson Parish Drainage Department places large sandbags near a canal and pond in Jean Lafitte, Louisiana, on Monday in preparation for Isaac.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A St. Petersburg, Florida, resident walks along the sea wall at Spa Beach, where larger than average waves were being kicked up by Tropical Storm Isaac on Monday.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Oliver Marti sweeps water from heavy rains generated by Tropical Storm Isaac off the roof of his flower shop on Monday in Tampa, Florida.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Larry Hoffmeister, left, and Charles Carter place storm shutters on Carter's vacation home on Dauphin Island, Alabama, as they prepare for Isaac on Sunday.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Justin and Kayla Franklin of Tennessee walk in wind and rain in downtown Key West as Tropical Storm Isaac moves over the island.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Biloxi, Mississippi, resident Stephanie Dale fills out paperwork Sunday to have her dog microchipped at the Humane Society of South Mississippi, which opened its doors to provide an emergency microchip and tag clinic.

Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Andrew Marino, left, and Colby Collier pull a wagon filled with sandbags back to their homes as Florida residents prepared for Tropical Storm Isaac in St. Pete Beach, Florida, on Sunday.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Palm trees blow in the wind in front of the Tampa Bay Times Forum, where the start of the Republican National Convention was pushed to Tuesday.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Earl, right, and Terri Harris place sandbags around their home to prepare for possible flooding.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – People venture out into the stormy weather as Tropical Storm Isaac passed by Marathon, Florida, on Sunday.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – A couple watch as waves and strong winds from Tropical Storm Isaac, which crossed Cuba on Sunday, batter the shore in Gibara, Cuba, on Saturday.

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Isaac pounds Gulf Coast – Strong winds bend palm trees in Cuba's northern province of Sancti Spiritus on Saturday. Isaac is expected to strengthen and become a Category 1 hurricane by early Monday as it draws nearer to Florida.

Louisiana is the last state where regular cleanup operations from the oil spill are still under way. The Coast Guard and BP, the owner of the ruptured well at the heart of the disaster, declared the cleanup over in Alabama, Florida and Mississippi earlier this month, but more than 80 miles of the Louisiana coast are still being patrolled.

BP has recovered more than 2.7 million pounds of waste from Louisiana shores in 2013, with residual oil making up between 5 and 15% of that total weight, company spokesman Jason Ryan told CNN.

The drill rig Deepwater Horizon exploded and sank in April 2010, killing 11 men aboard and unleashing an undersea gusher a mile beneath the surface of the Gulf of Mexico. Most of the oil is believed to have evaporated or been consumed by microbes deep under water. But a still-undetermined portion settled to the floor of the Gulf, and some of it was stirred up and washed back ashore after Hurricane Isaac in 2012.